12-year-old accused of striking woman in face with screwdriver amid robbery appears in court; lawyer calls him a ‘good kid’

A 12-year-old boy accused of striking a woman in the face with a screwdriver and beating her amid a weekend robbery in Seattle went before a juvenile court judge Tuesday, KOMO-TV reported.

Despite the boy’s attorney referring to him as a “good kid” who should be released to his parents — and his father making what a KOMO video report said was an emotional plea to the court — the judge didn’t see it that way.

‘He turned 12 about three months ago.’

The first-appearance judge determined there was probable cause to believe the boy committed first-degree robbery, which under state law involves the display of a deadly weapon or the infliction of bodily injury, the station said.

The judge ordered the boy held in secure juvenile detention, KOMO reported, adding that bail is not considered in juvenile court and a respondent is either released or held.

The defense argued that the boy’s parents would watch him and monitor his behavior, while the state said the boy has chronic issues, the station report. The defense still asked for the boy’s release to his parents and wasn’t opposed to electronic home monitoring, KOMO added.

In the station’s video report, the boy’s attorney is heard arguing that her client is “quite young; he turned 12 about three months ago. He has no criminal adjudication history.” The boy — whose face isn’t shown in the video — is seen apparently wiping his eyes with tissue during the proceedings.

But Judge Tanya Thorp said he’ll remain in detention, noting that his “multiple contacts” with police deemed “chronic is of great concern to me.”

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More from KOMO:

The case remains under investigation by Seattle police and has not yet been formally referred to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said that timeline is typical, noting that charging decisions require a higher burden of proof than the probable cause standard used at a first-appearance hearing.

King County prosecutors said they expect to receive the case referral from Seattle police on Thursday and anticipate making a charging decision later this week. Prosecutors said first-degree robbery cases are not eligible for diversion and are instead handled in juvenile court with input from juvenile probation counselors.

Washington state law says a 12-year-old charged with first-degree robbery must remain in juvenile court, the station noted, adding that officials said prosecutors and judges lack the authority to transfer such a case to adult court, regardless of the circumstances.

Authorities told KOMO the next update is expected Thursday evening.

In regard to Saturday evening’s incident, police said a juvenile suspect wearing a “hot pink ski mask” robbed a 43-year-old woman at an Amazon Fresh store. Police said the suspect “attacked the victim, hitting her multiple times in the face with his hands,” after which he struck the woman in the face with a screwdriver.

The suspect rifled through the victim’s handbag in a parking garage — and then returned to the victim and assaulted her again before running off, police said.

While police located the suspect, they said he fled from them on foot. However, police recognized the suspect based on previous interactions — as well as his age and unique clothing description — and went to his family’s house and got a search warrant for his arrest, police said.

Officers took the suspect into custody without incident and recovered the screwdriver, police said.

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